


Tether

by starswholisten



Category: A Court of Thorns and Roses Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: And also stare at his wings probably, Banter, Cassian likes to get himself in these situations, F/M, Nesta just wants to read her damn book, Unacknowledged Mating Bond, acowar spoilers, takes place between ACOMAF & ACOWAR
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-24
Updated: 2017-05-24
Packaged: 2018-11-04 07:47:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10986561
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starswholisten/pseuds/starswholisten
Summary: Cassian bothers Nesta in the library.Born from the prompt: "You look so sexy when you're ignoring me."





	Tether

When Cassian unceremoniously burst through the library doors, Nesta didn’t even flinch. As usual.

Cassian had to admit, he’d taken to coming up here a lot more often than he had… well, ever. Ever since Nesta decided that she’d spend every waking hour in here reading book after book after book, he’d found himself somehow gravitating toward this particular corner of the House of Wind, something deep within him tugging him toward her.

Of course, it didn’t hurt that the flight up here was the perfect distance to regain the strength in his wings without putting himself in mortal peril. At least, that’s what he told Rhys or Azriel or Mor every time he found himself making an excuse to come up here.

Though, truth be told, interrupting Nesta’s reading was another kind of mortal peril that he didn’t mind putting himself in. The last, oh, six or so times he’d come here, she’d just about torn his balls off. A lesser male would’ve been scared off after the first time, when she’d thrown her hardcover book right at his face after he made a lewd comment. Cassian, though… as much as her anger infuriated him, and as much as he probably deserved it for letting her drown in that Cauldron, he couldn’t stay away. That insistent tug in his gut wouldn’t let him stay away.

So he kept coming back for more.

And to his credit, Nesta was still there. Every single day, she was in the same armchair with a different book, even though she should surely know to expect his interruption by now. He took that as a good sign, or as good of a sign as he was going to get from the steely, fiery devastation that was Nesta Archeron.

As the doors closed behind him, creaking with the force he’d thrown them open with, Cassian didn’t take his eyes off of that devastating form curled around the novel she held, though she paid him no heed. He began to browse the shelves then, his arms secured behind his back as he prowled slowly up the aisle toward her, taking his time.

Still, no movement from Nesta. A predatory silence had washed over the library that was unnatural even for a normally quiet place, and Cassian kept her in his peripheral vision as he reached up to slide a book off the shelf. Flipping through it to add some rustle to the silence, he noticed her mouth twitch just so, enough to deepen her scowl, but her eyes stayed glued to the page before her.

Cassian placed the book back and resumed his browsing, smirking gently to himself at the small reaction he’d gotten from her. As much as her eyes were on that book, Cassian knew she would sense the smirk, knew it would rile her up even more.

After a few minutes, he began to whistle softly, and that was her breaking point.

Nesta didn’t speak - no, she was never the first to speak in these moments - but she grunted in frustration and shifted in her chair enough so that she could place one pointed ear against the back of the chair and a hand over the other.

This time, a genuine smile broke over Cassian’s face.

“Something bothering you, Nes?"

It was daring, that nickname. Last time he had called her that, a storm of pages had blown into his face and he’d gotten more than one paper cut. But that was just it - this was the only way to bring out that power that she’d been suppressing all these weeks, the only way, he discovered, he would ever find out what exactly that power even _was_. She wouldn’t train, wouldn’t talk about it. Would only use it to piss Cassian off.

And that was fine with him. He quite enjoyed pissing her off in return.

But this time, there was no sudden blast of magic, no angry glare that threatened to cut his manhood off. No, Nesta still diligently stared at the book before her, albeit the slightly redder complexion of her face giving away just how much he was affecting her.

Cassian followed that flush with a predatory gaze, from her cheeks to her long, tempting neck, the neck that had been luring him since that day they’d spoken alone in the human realms. His eyes always found their way to it, his pounding heart thanking the Mother that Nesta always wore her hair up in a braided crown to reveal it to the world. Maybe she knew what it did to him, knew that it distracted him from the task at hand, and he damned her for that bit of intuition before returning his focus to her face.

He would return the favor.

“You look so sexy when you’re ignoring me."

That hit its mark.

Nesta tensed before slowly, dangerously lifting her gaze to his, a murderous calm settling over her face as she stayed very, very still in that high-backed chair. Her blue-grey eyes never failed to make his heart falter, simultaneously icy and burning as they were, even when they were clearly plotting his swift death. Cassian must have been looking for trouble, looking to be killed - but he grinned at her with the full force of his cocky bravado, eager for the blow she would hit him with this time.

But Nesta only watched him for a moment before turning that gaze back to her book.

Cassian seethed - even as a thrill went through him. Who knew that this female’s utter dismissal would make him feel so unhinged, so alive?

“Though you’re not really ignoring me are you, sweetheart?” he went on, prowling closer to her, his eyes drinking in the top of her head because it was all she would show him. “You’ve been attuned to my every move since I arrived."

“What makes you think,” Nesta finally said, her head snapping up as he came close enough for that book to do _real_ damage to his skull, “that I give a damn what you do?"

Even as her words stung, that tether inside him _pulled_ , begged him to get closer, pleaded with him to inhale her scent, urged that her words - she didn’t mean them. Not completely. That tug told him something he was too afraid to admit, something she definitely wasn’t ready to accept or let alone _know_ about, something that made him realize that, no matter how unpleasant this encounter was about to become, he’d be right back in this spot tomorrow. Same time, same place, same pounding heartbeat.

Because no matter how barbed her words - Cassian craved them. Needed them. Lived for the sound of her voice. And he couldn’t do anything about it - and didn’t want to.

So he merely smirked at her, shrugged, and lazily said, “Because you haven’t turned a single page in the last twenty minutes I’ve been here."

Before Nesta’s temper caused an all-out fire in the library, Cassian turned on his heel and trudged out of the library, already eager for tomorrow’s encounter with the hellcat.


End file.
